Method and system for the control of discontinuous reception in a wireless network

ABSTRACT

Methods and apparatus for controlling discontinuous reception on a mobile device and in particular to control a short discontinuous reception timer in response to receipt of a medium access control control element. The methods and apparatus include stopping, restarting or maintaining the short discontinuous reception timer. Methods and apparatus for limiting or stopping a retransmission timer by providing user equipment with a maximum retry value for transmissions, by providing a maximum redundant version value, or by providing a medium access control control element to stop or prevent the start of a retransmission timer.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.12/430,333, filed Apr. 27, 2009, which claims the benefit of U.S.Provisional Patent Application 61/047964; filed Apr. 25, 2008, theentire disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein intheir entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to the long term evolution (E-UTRA) ofThird Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), and in particular todiscontinuous reception (DRX) for user equipment (UE) in the E-UTRAinfrastructure.

BACKGROUND

In the long term evolution infrastructure, a UE can be in one of tworadio resource control (RRC) states. These are LTE_IDLE and LTE_ACTIVE.

The UE can be configured for discontinuous reception (DRX) in both theLTE_IDLE and the LTE_ACTIVE states. DRX allows the UE to synchronize itslistening period to a known paging cycle of the network. Bysynchronizing the listening period with acceptable transmission timesfrom the network, the UE can turn off its radio transceiver when thenetwork will not schedule transmissions, thereby significantly savingbattery resources. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art,unless a UE is used extensively, a large drain on its battery comes fromthe standby cycle in which it monitors the paging channel (or controlchannels) and measures serving and neighboring cells. DRX parametersallow the mobile to synchronize with the network and to know that itwill not receive another signal until a specified time has elapsed.

Utilizing DRX in an IDLE state is performed in present UMTS systems andis done by the network signaling to the UE a DRX parameter andsynchronizing the UE and the network.

In an ACTIVE state however, various issues exist for turning off thereceiver based on a DRX parameter. This includes the fact that onlynetwork controlled handover is allowed in the LTE_ACTIVE state. Also,other issues include efficient signaling of activation and deactivationof DRX, measurement requirements of network signals during the DRX,handling of missed handover opportunities, and issues dealing with thelength of the DRX value in which entity in the network can request DRXactivation and reconfiguring the DRX period.

Further issues involve configuration and control of various timers forlong DRX.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present application will be better understood with reference to thedrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a long term evolution user planeprotocol stack;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a long term evolution control planeprotocol architecture;

FIG. 3 a is a flow chart showing a method to activate deactivate andreconfigure DRX period using a MAC-PDU header from the eNB side;

FIG. 3 b is a flow chart showing a method to acknowledge the activation,deactivation or reconfiguration of the DRX period from the UE side;

FIG. 4 a is a flow chart showing a method to transition directly to longDRX period using a MAC-PDU header from the eNB side;

FIG. 4 b is a flow chart showing a method to transition directly to along DRX period from the UE side and stopping the short DRX timer ifrunning;

FIG. 4 c is a flow chart showing a method to transition directly to along DRX period from the UE side and resetting the short DRX timer ifrunning;

FIG. 4 d is a flow chart showing a method to transition directly to along DRX period from the UE side and maintaining the short DRX timer ifrunning;

FIG. 5 a is a flow chart showing a network side method for signalingthat a maximum number of retries has occurred;

FIG. 5 b is a flow chart showing a UE side method for determiningwhether to start a retransmission timer;

FIG. 6 a is a flow chart showing a network side method for signalingthat a maximum number of retries has occurred;

FIG. 6 b is a flow chart showing a UE side method for determiningwhether to start a retransmission timer;

FIG. 7 a is a flow chart showing a network side method for signalingthat an expiration value for a number of retries;

FIG. 7 b is a flow chart showing a UE side method for determiningwhether to start a retransmission timer;

FIG. 8 a is a flow chart showing a network side method for signaling amaximum redundant version number;

FIG. 8 b is a flow chart showing a UE side method for determiningwhether to start a retransmission timer;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile device apt to be usedwith the present disclosure; and . . .

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a simplified network element apt to beused with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure provides various methods and systems foraddressing the deficiencies in the prior art regarding DRX in anLTE_ACTIVE state.

The present disclosure provides a method to control a shortdiscontinuous reception ‘DRX’ timer comprising: receiving a mediumaccess control control element; checking whether a short DRX cycle isconfigured; stopping the short DRX timer responsive to the checking; andutilizing a long DRX cycle.

The present disclosure further provides a method to control a shortdiscontinuous reception ‘DRX’ timer comprising: receiving a mediumaccess control control element; checking whether a short DRX cycle isconfigured; and restarting the short DRX timer responsive to thechecking.

The present disclosure still further provides a method to control ashort discontinuous reception ‘DRX’ timer comprising: receiving a mediumaccess control control element; checking whether a short DRX cycle isrunning; and maintaining the short DRX timer responsive to the checking.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted tocontrol a short discontinuous reception ‘DRX’ timer comprising: acommunications subsystem adapted to communicate with a network elementand to further receive a medium access control control element; and aprocessor, said processor adapted to check whether a short DRX cycle isconfigured and responsive to the checking to stop the short DRX timerand transition the user equipment to a long DRX cycle.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted tocontrol a short discontinuous reception ‘DRX’ timer comprising: acommunications subsystem adapted to communicate with a network elementand to further receive a medium access control control element; and aprocessor, said processor adapted to check whether a short DRX timer isrunning and responsive to the checking to restart the short DRX timer.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted tocontrol a short discontinuous reception ‘DRX’ timer comprising: acommunications subsystem adapted to communicate with a network elementand to further receive a medium access control control element; and aprocessor, said processor adapted to check whether a short DRX cycle isconfigured and responsive to the checking to maintain the short DRXtimer.

The present disclosure further provides a method to prevent aretransmission timer from starting, comprising: receiving a value for amaximum number of downlink transmissions for a hybrid acknowledgementrequest process; checking whether the number of downlink transmissionsfor the hybrid acknowledgement request process equals or exceeds thevalue; and responsive to the checking, preventing the retransmissiontimer from starting.

The present disclosure further provides a method to prevent aretransmission timer from starting, comprising: receiving a value for aspecific redundant version; checking whether the redundant version forthe hybrid acknowledgement request process equals the value; andresponsive to the checking, preventing the retransmission timer fromstarting.

The present disclosure further provides a method to prevent aretransmission timer from starting, comprising: receiving an expirationvalue for a number of downlink transmissions for a hybridacknowledgement request process; checking whether the number of downlinktransmissions for the hybrid acknowledgement request process equals orexceeds the expiration value; and responsive to the checking, preventingthe retransmission timer from starting.

The present disclosure further provides a method to limit a duration ofa retransmission timer or to prevent the start of the retransmissiontimer comprising: receiving a discontinuous reception medium accesscontrol control element; identifying a hybrid acknowledgement requestprocess corresponding to the discontinuous reception medium accesscontrol control element; and preventing the start of, or stopping, theretransmission timer for the hybrid acknowledgement request process.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted toprevent a retransmission timer from starting, comprising: acommunication subsystem adapted to receive a value for a maximum numberof downlink transmissions for a hybrid acknowledgement request process;and a processor adapted to check whether the number of downlinktransmissions for the hybrid acknowledgement request process equals orexceeds the value and responsive to the check the processor adapted toprevent the retransmission timer from starting.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted toprevent a retransmission timer from starting, comprising: acommunications subsystem adapted to receive a value for a specificredundant version; and a processor adapted to check whether theredundant version for the hybrid acknowledgement request process equalsto the value and responsive to the checking, the processor adapted toprevent the retransmission timer from starting.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted toprevent a retransmission timer from starting, comprising: acommunication subsystem adapted to receive an expiration value for anumber of downlink transmissions for a hybrid acknowledgement requestprocess; and a processor adapted to check whether the number of downlinktransmissions for the hybrid acknowledgement request process equals orexceeds the expiration value and responsive to the check the processoris adapted to prevent the retransmission timer from starting.

The present disclosure further provides a user equipment adapted tolimit a duration of a retransmission timer or to prevent the start ofthe retransmission timer comprising: a communications subsystem adaptedto receive a discontinuous reception medium access control controlelement; and a processor adapted to identify a hybrid acknowledgementrequest process corresponding to the discontinuous reception mediumaccess control control element, the processor further adapted to preventthe start of, or to stop, the retransmission timer for the hybridacknowledgement request process.

Reference is now made to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a block diagramillustrating the long-term evolution (LTE) user plane protocol stack.

A UE 110 communicates with an evolved Node B (eNB) 120.

Various layers are illustrated in the protocol stack. The packet dataconvergence protocol (PDCP) layer 140 is illustrated both on the UE 110and on eNB 120. The PDCP layer 140 performs Internet protocol (IP)header compression and decompression, encryption of user data, transferof user data and maintenance of PDCP sequence numbers (SN) for radiobearers.

Below the PDCP layer 140 is the radio link control protocol layer 142,which communicates with the radio link control protocol layer 142 on theeNB 120. As will be appreciated, communication occurs through thephysical layer in protocol stacks such as those illustrated in FIGS. 1and 2. However, RLC-PDUs from the RLC layer 142 of the UE areinterpreted by the RLC layer 142 on the eNB 120.

Below RLC layer 142 is the medium access control (MAC) datacommunication protocol layer 146. As will be appreciated by thoseskilled in the art, the RLC and MAC protocols form the data linksublayers of the LTE radio interface and reside on the eNB in LTE anduser equipment.

The layer 1 (L1) LTE (physical layer 148) is below the RLC/MAC layers142 and 146. This layer is the physical layer for communications.

Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 2 illustrates the LTE control plane protocolarchitecture. Similar reference numerals to those used in FIG. 1 will beused in FIG. 2. Specifically, UE 110 communicates with eNB 120 and anaccess gateway (aGW) 130. Further, physical layer 148, MAC layer 146,RLC layer 142 and PDCP layer 140 exist within FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 also shows the non-access stratum (NAS) layer 210. As will beappreciated, NAS layer 210 could include mobility management and sessionmanagement.

The radio resource control protocol layer (RRC) 220, is the part of theprotocol stack that is responsible for the assignment, configuration andrelease of radio resources between the UE and the E-UTRAN (Evolveduniversal terrestrial radio access network). The basic functionalitiesof RRC protocol for LTE is described in 3GPP TS 36.331.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, in UMTS, automaticrepeat request (ARQ) functionality is carried out within the RLC layerwhich resides in the radio network controller (RNC). Long Term Evolution(LTE) moves the ARQ functionality from the RNC to eNB where a tighterinteraction may exist between the ARQ and the HARQ (within the MAClayer, also located in the eNB).

Various issues regarding DRX in an LTE-ACTIVE state are consideredherein.

DRX Signaling Procedure

Very efficient signaling procedures for activating and de-activating DRXand specifying the duration of DRX periods are required in order tosupport a large population of UEs in a cell that are utilizing DRX in anLTE_ACTIVE state.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, if the evolved nodeB (eNB) transmits data to the UE during its receiver off period due to aDRX operation, the UE cannot receive the data. Therefore, an indicationis required to ensure the UE and the eNB are synchronized regarding whenDRX is activated and deactivated.

The indication between the UE and the eNB can be explicit signaling bythe radio resource control (RRC) or layer 1/layer 2 (L1/L2) signaling.As will be appreciated, however, explicit signaling may not be asefficient as desired.

A more efficient solution is to include an optional field in the MACheader of a MAC-PDU (MAC Protocol Data Unit) to indicate DRX activationand deactivation. The field preferably indicates the DRX value andtiming margin for activation and deactivation. A value of zero, forexample, could mean DRX deactivation in the DRX value field in oneembodiment. Conversely, if data that is to be transmitted in the nextMAC-PDU is the last one in the buffer for the UE, the eNB may extend theMAC header field to include a DRX length initial value. For example,this could be 320 milliseconds. The timing margin is explained below,and is utilized to reduce the consequences of a NACK to ACK or ACK toNACK misinterpretation, for the reception status of the MAC-PDU betweenthe UE and the eNB.

For example, three bits may be added to the MAC header to indicate eightvalues of the DRX period. Thus, rather than a specific time value beingsent, a bit value from 000 to 111 could indicate one of eight discretevalues.

In an alternative embodiment, a smaller field in the MAC header could beused (for example two bits) to indicate increment or decrement. The RRCcould indicate default values, and if the MAC header indicates incrementor decrement then the UE could change to the prespecified value.

For example, a Logical Channel ID field (LCID) for a downlink sharedchannel (DL-SCH) could be:

Values of LCID for DL-SCH Index LCID values 00000 CCCH 00001-xxxxxIdentity of the logical channel xxxxx-11011 Reserved 11100 [UEContention Resolution Identity] 11101 [Timing Advance] 11110 DRX Command11111 Padding

As indicated above, a DRX Control Element could be 11110 in the Index.

Once the UE receives the DRX value, it acknowledges it to the eNB bytransmitting HARQ ACK and starts the DRX at the system frame timeconsidering propagation delay and processing delay at the eNB. When theeNB receives the ACK from the UE, it also starts the DRX at the nextsystem frame time. As will be appreciated, the eNB does not turn off itstransceiver, but simply knows not to transmit messages to the individualUE.

During a DRX period, if new data arrives at the eNB, the eNB can send aMAC-PDU with a header extension set to DRX deactivation or a shorter DRXlength depending on the amount of data in the buffer or the quality ofservice requirements. The UE reconfigures the DRX accordingly andacknowledges the MAC-PDU. When the eNB receives the ACK, it reconfiguresthe DRX. As indicated above, the deactivation could be accomplished bymerely setting the length value to zero.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 3 a and 3 b. FIG. 3 a shows an exemplarymethod for controlling DRX activation in an LTE_ACTIVE state. Theprocess starts at block 300 and proceeds to block 310 in which data istransmitted to the UE. As will be appreciated by those skilled in theart, data transmission in an LTE_ACTIVE state utilizes the MAC-PDU atthe data link layer to transmit the data.

The process next proceeds to block 312 in which a check is made to seewhether the buffer of data to be sent to the UE will be empty after thenext transmit. If no, the process proceeds back to block 310 in whichdata is transmitted to the UE. Alternatively, if the buffer will beempty after the next transmit and the data arrival rate is lower than athreshold value, the process proceeds to block 314.

In block 314, the eNB sets DRX activation in the MAC-PDU header. Asindicated above, this includes a DRX activation value indicating thelength of the DRX period. In another embodiment the eNB may simplyindicate an increase in the DRX interval. The UE reconfigures theexisting DRX interval to a predetermined interval. The predeterminedinterval may be either known to both eNB and UE or pre-signaled to theUE from the eNB via explicit signaling; either by system broadcast orRRC signaling.

The process then proceeds to block 316 in which the data including themodified MAC-PDU header is sent to the UE.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3 b. In block 318, the UE receives thedata and sees that DRX activation is specified in the MAC-PDU header.The process proceeds to block 320 in which the UE sends anacknowledgement (ACK) to the eNB and starts the DRX at the system frametime considering propagation delay and processing delay at the eNB.

In block 330 of FIG. 3 a, the eNB receives the ACK from the UE andstarts the DRX at the next system frame time.

As will be appreciated, the DRX can continue until various events occurwhich may require the DRX to be adjusted. One event is the reception ofdata from aGW by the eNB for the UE. Depending on the amount of datareceived, the DRX can either be deactivated or the period of the DRX canbe reduced. Other events that may require the adjustment of the DRXinclude a change of signal power level between the eNB and the UE orpossibly a gradual increase in the DRX cycle due to continued datainactivity, among others. These other events are discussed in moredetail below.

In block 332 the eNB checks to see whether the DRX needs to be adjusted.As indicated above, this could be the situation where data is receivedto be sent to the UE. Here the DRX can either be deactivated or theperiod adjusted.

From block 332, if the DRX does not need to be adjusted, the processproceeds back to block 332 and continues to check whether or not the DRXneeds to be adjusted.

Once the process in block 332 finds that the DRX does need to beadjusted, the process proceeds to block 334 in which it adjusts the DRX.This could be deactivating the DRX by transmitting a zero value for theDRX or a shorter DRX or a longer DRX as required.

The MAC-PDU with the modified header is sent to the UE in block 336. TheMAC-PDU in block 336 could also include any data that has been receivedby the eNB that needs to be transmitted to the UE.

Referring to FIG. 3 b, the process then proceeds to block 318 in whichthe MAC-PDU with modified header is received at the UE. This MAC-PDUwith the modified header is referred to herein as the MAC ControlElement (CE). The UE recognizes the DRX period is to be adjusted and inblock 320 it sends an acknowledgement to the eNB and it adjusts its DRXperiod at the same system frame time considering propagation delay andprocessing delay as at the eNB.

Referring to FIG. 3 a, in block 342 the eNB receives the ACK and startsthe modified DRX period at the appropriate system frame time. Theprocess then proceeds back to block 332 to see whether the DRX needs tobe adjusted again.

In one embodiment, a DRX command MAC control element could indicate to aUE to transition to a DRX period. In this case, if the eNB wants the UEto transition to a long DRX period due to lack of uplink and downlinktraffic and based on low traffic rates for non real time DRX, undercurrent E-UTRA specifications this requires a change in the DRXconfiguration to be made with an RRC configuration message. This may bea ‘go-to-sleep’ command. An issue with this is that if the eNB laterreceives traffic patterns that require a shorter DRX period, the RRCconfiguration message will need to be sent again to reconfigure the DRXconfiguration on the UE.

Instead, a MAC CE could include a “go-to-long-sleep” possibility. Thus,the eNB could provide the UE with an option to go directly to a long DRXperiod or cycle without a reconfiguration message explicitly being sent.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4 a. In FIG. 4 a, the process starts atblock 410 and proceeds to block 412 in which a check is made todetermine whether a precondition for a long DRX cycle exists. As will beappreciated by those skilled in the art, such a precondition couldinclude one or more of: the DRX being configured, a lack of uplink anddownlink traffic for the UE, low data transmission to the UE, theposition of the UE within a cell and the likelihood of a transitionoccurring, among others.

If, in block 412, a determination is made that the precondition existsthe process proceeds to block 420 in which a long DRX MAC CE is sent tothe UE.

Conversely, if the precondition in block 412 does not exist, the processproceeds to block 430 in which the short DRX period is maintained andthe process proceeds back to block 412.

Stopping the Short DRX Timer

From the UE perspective, reference is now made to FIG. 4 b. The processin FIG. 4 b starts at block 450 and proceeds to block 452 in which acheck is made to determine whether short DRX cycle is configured. Ifnot, the process proceeds to block 460 in which a long DRX cycle isused.

Conversely, if it is determined in block 452 that short DRX cycle isconfigured, the process proceeds to block 470 in which a check is madeto determine whether a DRX MAC CE command has been received.

From block 470, if a DRX MAC CE command has been received, the processproceeds to block 472 in which a check is made to see whether the shortDRX timer is started. If yes, the process proceeds to block 473 in whichthe short DRX timer is stopped. As will be appreciated, this avoidshaving a short DRX cycle start on the expiry of the timer.

The process then proceeds to block 476 in which a long DRX cycle isused.

Conversely, if it is determined that the short DRX timer has not beenstarted in block 472, the process proceeds directly to block 476 anduses a long DRX cycle.

Restarting the Short DRX Timer

Alternatively, instead of stopping the short DRX cycle timer at block473, other options are available. A first is to restart the DRX shortcycle timer.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4 c. In FIG. 4 c the same blocks as inFIG. 4 b are performed, except block 473 from FIG. 4 b is replaced withblock 474 in FIG. 4 c. Block 474 restarts the short DRX timer. As willbe appreciated by those in the art, this provides the situation that, ifthe DRX short cycle timer is already started when receiving the DRX MACCE, the duration of short DRX is extended. In this case a long DRX cycleis not transitioned to until the expiry of the short DRX timer.

From block 474 the process proceeds to block 480 and ends.

Maintaining the Short DRX Timer

A further alternative option is to keep the current DRX short cycletimer. In this case, the duration of the short DRX cycle is unchangedregardless of the reception of the DRX MAC CE.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4 d, which replaces block 473 of FIG. 4 bwith block 475. In block 475 the process maintains the current short DRXtimer. This keeps the current DRX transition time from a short DRX cycleto a long DRX cycle. From block 475 the process proceeds to block 480and ends.

Under this embodiment, once the DRX short cycle timer expires the UEtransitions to a long DRX cycle.

The three embodiments above thus present the options of extending theshort DRX cycle period by restarting the DRX short cycle timer,maintaining the current DRX short cycle period by maintaining thecurrent short cycle timer, or transitioning immediately to long DRX bystopping the DRX short cycle timer. From a battery perspective and anetwork signaling perspective, the maintaining of the current DRX shortcycle timer or the transitioning directly to long DRX are preferable.Restarting the DRX short cycle timer extends the short DRX period whichutilizes more battery and network resources then a UE in long DRX.

From block 476 the process proceeds to block 480 and ends.

From block 470, if a DRX MAC CE has not been received the processproceeds to block 490 in which a short DRX timer is started. The processthen proceeds to block 492 in which the UE uses a short DRX period orcycle. The use of the short DRX timer allows the UE to transition to along DRX cycle after the timer has expired if no data is received orsent during the timer period.

From block 492 the process proceeds to block 480 and ends.

The above saves battery consumption and network resources when very lowtraffic is observed by the eNB. The solution provides a more efficientway to transition to a long DRX cycle than by sending RRC levelreconfiguration messages.

DRX Retransmission Timer

A further issue for control of DRX is with regard to the retransmissiontimer. As indicated in 3GPP TS 36.321 a DRX retransmission timerspecifies the maximum number of consecutive downlink subframes the UE isto monitor the packet data control channel (PDCCH) for when a downlinkretransmission is expected by the UE. It is utilized in situations wherea packet has unsuccessfully been received and a retransmission of thepacket has been requested.

While waiting for retransmission, an HARQ round trip time (RTT) timer isutilized to allow the UE the ability to turn its radio off during thistime. The HARQ RTT timer is a parameter which specifies the minimumamount of subframes before a downlink HARQ retransmission is expected bythe UE.

In one embodiment, a counter, referred to herein as a retransmissioncounter, will count the number of times the retransmission timer isstarted or stopped by the UE.

Current functionality for discontinuous reception in 3GPP standardsincludes the following:

-   -   When a DRX cycle has been configured, the UE shall for each        downlink subframe,        -   if a HARQ RTT timer expires in this downlink subframe and            the data in the soft offer of the corresponding HARQ process            was not successfully decoded;            -   UE shall start the DRX retransmission for the                corresponding HARQ process.

The standards further specify that DRX retransmission timers arestopped:

-   -   if the PDCCH indicates a DL transmission;        -   start the HARQ RTT timer for the corresponding HARQ process;        -   stop the DRX retransmission timer for the corresponding HARQ            process.            One problem with the above is in the situation that the MAC            PDU is not successfully decoded when the maximum number of            transmission or retransmissions is reached. Since the            maximum number of retransmissions is reached, the eNB will            not send another retransmission; however, the UE will still            expect to receive a retransmission. In this case, the DRX            retransmission timer will be started, but since the maximum            number of transmissions is reached, no retransmission will            be sent, and the retransmission timer of the corresponding            HARQ process will not be stopped until other new            transmission using the same HARQ process is indicated over            the PDCCH or the timer is expired. The UE may wake up an            additional retransmission window without receiving anything.            The consequence of this is that in certain cases the DRX            retransmission timer for certain HARQ processes may be            running unnecessarily which causes the UE to continue to            monitor the PDCCH unnecessarily and the UE to transmit the            sounding reference signal (SRS) and channel quality            indicator (CQI) and other feedbacks that facilitate more            efficient downlink transmissions unnecessarily in the            uplink.

Send DRX MAC CE to UE

Various solutions to the above are possible. In a first solution thenetwork may send a DRX MAC control element to the UE.

The reception of DRX MAC CE results in the on-duration timer andinactivity timer being stopped. This could be extended to also stop theretransmission timer.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, stopping theretransmission timer requires identification of the HARQ process. In oneembodiment this can be done by including an optional field within theDRX MAC CE. For example, a three bit HARQ process identifier field couldbe included in the DRX MAC CE.

In an alternative embodiment the UE could stop the retransmission timerwith the maximum value or the HARQ process that has the largest numberof transmissions.

Reference is now made to FIG. 5 a. FIG. 5 a shows a flow diagram of thenetwork side blocks used to send the DRX MAC CE. The process starts atblock 510 in which a precondition exists that the maximum number ofretries has occurred.

The process then proceeds to block 512 in which a DRX MAC CE is sent tothe UE.

Optionally, the process proceeds to block 514 in which the DRX MAC CEsent at block 512 is modified to include an HARQ process identifier.

The process then proceeds to block 520 and ends.

Referring to FIG. 5 b, this figure shows the UE side functionality forstopping the retransmission timer. The process starts at block 530 andproceeds to block 532 in which a DRX MAC CE is received at the UE.

If the DRX MAC CE includes the optional extension having the HARQprocess identifier, the process proceeds from block 532 to block 534 inwhich the HARQ process identifier is read from the DRX MAC CE.

Conversely, if the optional field for the process identifier does notexist in the DRX MAC CE, the process proceeds to block 536 in which theprocess identifies the HARQ process having the maximum number oftransmissions or the retransmission timer having the maximum value.Blocks 534 or 536 thus identify the retransmission timer to be stoppedor prevented from starting.

From block 534 or 536 the process proceeds to block 540 in which theretransmission timer for the process identified in blocks 534 or 536 isstopped or prevented from starting.

The process then proceeds to block 550 and ends.

As will be appreciated by those in the art, the above prevents aretransmission timer from running after the maximum number of retrieshas occurred by providing a DRX MAC CE to the UE to indicate that theretransmission timer should not be started or should be stopped.

Providing the Maximum Downlink Retry Value

As a further option, the network could signal the maximum number ofdownlink transmissions to the UE. In this case, the UE is thereforeaware of when to stop or prevent starting the retransmission timer.

Reference is now made to FIG. 6 a. FIG. 6 a, the network side flowdiagram is shown for signaling the maximum number of downlinktransmissions to the UE.

The process of FIG. 6 a starts at block 610 and proceeds to block 612 inwhich the maximum number of downlink transmissions is signaled to theUE. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the maximumnumber of retransmissions can vary based on factors such as the qualityof service (QoS) for semi-persistent or “configured” cases. The processthen proceeds to block 614 and ends.

Referring to FIG. 6 b, this figure shows the UE side process. Theprocess starts at block 620 and proceeds to block 622 in which the UEreceives and stores the maximum number of downlink transmissionspossible from the network.

Communication proceeds as normal and eventually reaches block 624 inwhich a check to made to determine whether a HARQ process has beensuccessfully decoded. If yes, the process proceeds to block 630 andends. Alternatively, the process could continue to receive and decodeHARQ processes.

If it is determined in block 624 that the HARQ process has not beensuccessfully decoded the process proceeds to block 640 and checkswhether the maximum number of downlink transmissions for that processhas been reached. This could done by utilizing a retransmission counteras described above to determine the number of retransmissions that haveoccurred. If yes, the process proceeds to block 630 and ends.

Conversely, if the maximum number of downlink transmissions has not beenreached as determined in block 640 the process proceeds to block 642 andthe retransmission timer is started pursuant to the current standards.

The above therefore prevents the starting of the retransmission timerwhen no further retransmissions will occur.

Providing an Expiration Retry Value

As a further option, the network could signal an expiration value to theUE, signaling the number of times a UE should start the retransmissiontimer for a given HARQ process. The expiration value relates to theretransmission counter, which counts the number of times theretransmission timer is started. In this case, the UE is therefore awareof when to stop or prevent starting the retransmission timer.

As will be appreciated by those in the art, the expiration value can beset by the network. Thus a network operator can determine that forcertain services such as voice over internet protocol, the starting of aretransmission timer more than a certain number of times will lead to abad user experience, and thus can set the expiration value to limit thenumber of times the retransmission timer starts.

In one embodiment the expiration retry value is less than the maximumdownlink retry value.

Reference is now made to FIG. 7 a. FIG. 7 a, the network side flowdiagram is shown for signaling the expiration value to the UE. In oneembodiment a different expiration value can be set for different typesof HARQ processes.

The process of FIG. 7 a starts at block 710 and proceeds to block 712 inwhich the expiration value or values are signaled to the UE. The processthen proceeds to block 714 and ends.

Referring to FIG. 7 b, this figure shows the UE side process. Theprocess starts at block 720 and proceeds to block 722 in which the UEreceives and stores the expiration value or values from the network.

Communication proceeds as normal and eventually reaches block 724 inwhich a check to made to determine whether a HARQ process has beensuccessfully decoded. If yes, the process proceeds to block 730 andends. Alternatively, the process could continue to receive and decodeHARQ processes.

If it is determined in block 724 that the HARQ process has not beensuccessfully decoded, the process proceeds to block 740 and checkswhether the number of retransmissions matches or exceeds the expirationvalue for the HARQ process. This could be done by utilizing aretransmission counter as described above to determine the number ofretransmissions that have occurred. If yes, the process proceeds toblock 730 and ends.

Conversely, if the number of retransmissions does not match or exceedthe expiration value for the HARQ process, as determined in block 740the process proceeds to block 742 and the retransmission timer isstarted pursuant to the current standards.

The above therefore prevents the starting of the retransmission timerwhen an expiration value has been reached.

Providing the a Specific Redundant Version Number

As a further option, instead of signaling a maximum number of downlinktransmissions, the UE could instead be signaled a specific redundantversion number associated with the last retransmission so the UE isaware when it is the last retransmission from the network.

Reference is now made to FIG. 8 a. FIG. 8 a shows a process from anetwork perspective for signaling a specific redundant version numberassociated with the last retransmission. The process starts at block 810and proceeds to block 812 in which the specific redundant version numberis signaled to the UE. The process then proceeds to block 814 and ends.

From the UE perspective reference is now made to FIG. 8 b. On the UEside FIG. 8 b starts at block 820 and proceeds to block 822 in which theUE receives and stores the redundant version number.

The process then proceeds and starts to decode HARQ processes. At block824 a check is made to determine whether the particular HARQ process wassuccessfully decoded. If yes, the process proceeds to block 830 andends.

Conversely, from block 824 if the HARQ process was not successfullydecoded the process proceeds to block 840 in which a check is made todetermine whether the last HARQ process has a redundant version numberthat matches the specific redundancy version number received at block822. If yes, the process proceeds to block 850 and ends. Conversely, theprocess proceeds to block 842 and starts the retransmission timer.Again, this prevents the starting of the retransmission timer if furtherretransmissions are not expected.

The various options above each present advantages with regard to theother options. The setting of a expiration value for the retransmissiontimer is easy to implement and requires minimal signaling.

Conversely, the sending of a DRX MAC CE prevents the start of theretransmission timer but requires further signaling. Similarly, thestoring of the maximum number of downlink retransmissions or specificredundant version number prevents the retransmission timer from startingunnecessarily.

The above can be implemented on any UE. Such UEs include, but are notlimited to, personal digital assistants, cellular telephones, wirelessdata devices, among others. Reference is now made to FIG. 9.

UE 900 is preferably a two-way wireless communication device having atleast voice and data communication capabilities. UE 900 preferably hasthe capability to communicate with other computer systems on theInternet. Depending on the exact functionality provided, the wirelessdevice may be referred to as a data messaging device, a two-way pager, awireless e-mail device, a cellular telephone with data messagingcapabilities, a wireless Internet appliance, or a data communicationdevice, as examples.

Where UE 900 is enabled for two-way communication, it will incorporate acommunication subsystem 911, including both a receiver 912 and atransmitter 914, as well as associated components such as one or more,preferably embedded or internal, antenna elements 916 and 918, localoscillators (LOs) 913, and a processing module such as a digital signalprocessor (DSP) 920. As will be apparent to those skilled in the fieldof communications, the particular design of the communication subsystem911 will be dependent upon the communication network in which the deviceis intended to operate. For example, UE 900 may include a communicationsubsystem 911 designed to operate within the LTE Network.

Network access requirements will also vary depending upon the type ofnetwork 919. For example, In UMTS and GPRS networks, network access isassociated with a subscriber or user of UE 900. For example, a GPRSmobile device therefore requires a subscriber identity module (SIM) cardin order to operate on a GPRS network. In UMTS and LTE a USIM or SIMmodule is required. In CDMA a RUIM card or module is required. Thesewill be referred to as a UIM interface herein. Without a valid UIMinterface, a mobile device may not be fully functional. Local ornon-network communication functions, as well as legally requiredfunctions (if any) such as emergency calling, may be available, butmobile device 900 will be unable to carry out any other functionsinvolving communications over the network 900. The UIM interface 944 isnormally similar to a card-slot into which a card can be inserted andejected like a diskette or PCMCIA card. The UIM card can haveapproximately 64K of memory and hold many key configuration 951, andother information 953 such as identification, and subscriber relatedinformation.

When required network registration or activation procedures have beencompleted, UE 900 may send and receive communication signals over thenetwork 919. Signals received by antenna 916 through communicationnetwork 919 are input to receiver 912, which may perform such commonreceiver functions as signal amplification, frequency down conversion,filtering, channel selection and the like, and in the example systemshown in FIG. 9, analog to digital (ND) conversion. A/D conversion of areceived signal allows more complex communication functions such asdemodulation and decoding to be performed in the DSP 920. In a similarmanner, signals to be transmitted are processed, including modulationand encoding for example, by DSP 920 and input to transmitter 914 fordigital to analog conversion, frequency up conversion, filtering,amplification and transmission over the communication network 919 viaantenna 918. DSP 920 not only processes communication signals, but alsoprovides for receiver and transmitter control. For example, the gainsapplied to communication signals in receiver 912 and transmitter 914 maybe adaptively controlled through automatic gain control algorithmsimplemented in DSP 920.

Network 919 may further communicate with multiple systems, including aserver 960 and other elements (not shown). For example, network 919 maycommunicate with both an enterprise system and a web client system inorder to accommodate various clients with various service levels.

UE 900 preferably includes a microprocessor 938 which controls theoverall operation of the device. Communication functions, including atleast data communications, are performed through communication subsystem911. Microprocessor 938 also interacts with further device subsystemssuch as the display 922, flash memory 924, random access memory (RAM)926, auxiliary input/output (I/O) subsystems 928, serial port 930,keyboard 932, speaker 934, microphone 936, a short-range communicationssubsystem 940 and any other device subsystems generally designated as942.

Some of the subsystems shown in FIG. 9 perform communication-relatedfunctions, whereas other subsystems may provide “resident” or on-devicefunctions. Notably, some subsystems, such as keyboard 932 and display922, for example, may be used for both communication-related functions,such as entering a text message for transmission over a communicationnetwork, and device-resident functions such as a calculator or tasklist.

Operating system software used by the microprocessor 938 is preferablystored in a persistent store such as flash memory 924, which may insteadbe a read-only memory (ROM) or similar storage element (not shown).Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the operating system,specific device applications, or parts thereof, may be temporarilyloaded into a volatile memory such as RAM 926. Received communicationsignals may also be stored in RAM 926. Further, a unique identifier isalso preferably stored in read-only memory.

As shown, flash memory 924 can be segregated into different areas forboth computer programs 958 and program data storage 950, 952, 954 and956. These different storage types indicate that each program canallocate a portion of flash memory 924 for their own data storagerequirements. Microprocessor 938, in addition to its operating systemfunctions, preferably enables execution of software applications on themobile device. A predetermined set of applications that control basicoperations, including at least data and voice communication applicationsfor example, will normally be installed on UE 900 during manufacturing.A preferred software application may be a personal information manager(PIM) application having the ability to organize and manage data itemsrelating to the user of the mobile device such as, but not limited to,e-mail, calendar events, voice mails, appointments, and task items.Naturally, one or more memory stores would be available on the mobiledevice to facilitate storage of PIM data items. Such PIM applicationwould preferably have the ability to send and receive data items, viathe wireless network 919. In a preferred embodiment, the PIM data itemsare seamlessly integrated, synchronized and updated, via the wirelessnetwork 919, with the mobile device user's corresponding data itemsstored or associated with a host computer system. Further applicationsmay also be loaded onto the mobile device 900 through the network 919,an auxiliary I/O subsystem 928, serial port 930, short-rangecommunications subsystem 940 or any other suitable subsystem 942, andinstalled by a user in the RAM 926 or preferably a non-volatile store(not shown) for execution by the microprocessor 938. Such flexibility inapplication installation increases the functionality of the device andmay provide enhanced on-device functions, communication-relatedfunctions, or both. For example, secure communication applications mayenable electronic commerce functions and other such financialtransactions to be performed using the UE 900. These applications willhowever, according to the above, in many cases need to be approved by acarrier.

In a data communication mode, a received signal such as a text messageor web page download will be processed by the communication subsystem911 and input to the microprocessor 938, which preferably furtherprocesses the received signal for output to the display 922, oralternatively to an auxiliary I/O device 928. A user of UE 900 may alsocompose data items such as email messages for example, using thekeyboard 932, which is preferably a complete alphanumeric keyboard ortelephone-type keypad, in conjunction with the display 922 and possiblyan auxiliary I/O device 928. Such composed items may then be transmittedover a communication network through the communication subsystem 911.

For voice communications, overall operation of UE 900 is similar, exceptthat received signals would preferably be output to a speaker 934 andsignals for transmission would be generated by a microphone 936.Alternative voice or audio I/O subsystems, such as a voice messagerecording subsystem, may also be implemented on UE 900. Although voiceor audio signal output is preferably accomplished primarily through thespeaker 934, display 922 may also be used to provide an indication ofthe identity of a calling party, the duration of a voice call, or othervoice call related information for example.

Serial port 930 in FIG. 9 would normally be implemented in a personaldigital assistant (PDA)-type mobile device for which synchronizationwith a user's desktop computer (not shown) may be desirable. Such a port930 would enable a user to set preferences through an external device orsoftware application and would extend the capabilities of mobile device900 by providing for information or software downloads to UE 900 otherthan through a wireless communication network. The alternate downloadpath may for example be used to load an encryption key onto the devicethrough a direct and thus reliable and trusted connection to therebyenable secure device communication.

Alternatively, serial port 930 could be used for other communications,and could include as a universal serial bus (USB) port. An interface isassociated with serial port 930.

Other communications subsystems 940, such as a short-rangecommunications subsystem, is a further optional component which mayprovide for communication between UE 900 and different systems ordevices, which need not necessarily be similar devices. For example, thesubsystem 940 may include an infrared device and associated circuits andcomponents or a Bluetooth™ communication module to provide forcommunication with similarly enabled systems and devices.

Reference is now made to FIG. 10. FIG. 10 illustrates the simplifiednetwork element adapted to make the decisions shown in FIGS. 3 a, 4 a, 5a, 6 a, 7 a and 8 a above. Network element 1010 includes acommunications subsystem 1020 adapted to communicate with userequipment. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the artcommunications subsystem 1020 does not need to directly communicate withuser equipment, but could be part of a communications path forcommunications to and from the user equipment.

Network element 1010 further includes a processor 1030 and a storage1040. Storage 1040 is adapted to store information for each userequipment being serviced by network element 1010. Processor 1030 isadapted to, provide information such as maximum number of retries,maximum redundant versions, DRX MAC CE, or expiration values bycommunications subsystem 1920.

The embodiments described herein are examples of structures, systems ormethods having elements corresponding to elements of the techniques ofthis application. This written description may enable those skilled inthe art to make and use embodiments having alternative elements thatlikewise correspond to the elements of the techniques of thisapplication. The intended scope of the techniques of this applicationthus includes other structures, systems or methods that do not differfrom the techniques of this application as described herein, and furtherincludes other structures, systems or methods with insubstantialdifferences from the techniques of this application as described herein.

1.-10. (canceled)
 11. A method for configuring a discontinuous reception(DRX) period for a user equipment from an evolved Node B (eNB)comprising: determining whether a precondition has been met, wherein theprecondition is at least one of a low traffic volume for the userequipment, a lack of uplink and downlink transmissions for the userequipment, and a likely transition of the user equipment to anothercell; when the precondition has been met, send a medium access control(MAC) control element for a long DRX period; and when the preconditionhas been not met, maintaining a short DRX period.
 12. The method ofclaim 11, wherein the maintaining step utilizes a preconfigured DRXconfiguration on the user equipment.
 13. An evolved Node B adapted toconfigure a discontinuous reception (DRX) for a user equipmentcomprising: a communication system; a memory; and a processor, theprocessor adapted to determine whether a precondition has been met,wherein the precondition is at least one of a low traffic volume for theuser equipment, a lack of uplink and downlink transmissions for the userequipment, and a likely transition of the user equipment to anothercell; when the precondition has been met, the processor is adapted tosend, through the communications subsystem, a medium access control(MAC) control element for a long DRX period; and when the preconditionhas not been met, the processor is adapted to maintain a short DRXperiod.
 14. The evolved Node B of claim 13, wherein the processor isadapted to use a preconfigured DRX configuration on the user equipmentto maintain the short DRX period.